Quote of the week

from the Weight Watchers 3-month journal:

"It is better to take many small steps in the right direction than to make a great leap forward only to stumble backward."

- Old Chinese proverb

Leap Day

In writing a comment on Facebook to reflect on the previous Leap Year and the forthcoming one, I went a little too far, so you get to read the full scoop here:

In Feb. 2008, I had a 15mo old sweetheart who didn't like to sleep. N and I shared drop-off/pick-up responsibilities and we mostly still ate dinner after Bit "went to bed." I was 27 (the supposed ultimate age); N was 30; Newb wasn't a sure thing yet, but I contemplated dates/spacing an awful lot.

Looking at my g-cal for fun, we were watching LOST, getting our carseat professionally installed/inspected, having our first night away from Bit (Valentine's Day overnight), actively househunting, and I had a standing chat date with my college BFFs. I was also gaming and using Let's Dish for meal planning. I had lost 9.2 lbs in January and weighed 181.6! It was my first time in the 180's. In early March, we were lucky enough to celebrate my grandma's 85th birthday with her.

On 2/28/08, I wrote someone this story about Bit (heart-melting):

I'm taking Bit to daycare most of this week so that N can get into work early and recoup some of his lost time. This morning I misjudged how cold it was and brought Bit to the frigid car, strapped her in and got it started to warm up. She kept fussing and I could see her breath. (In the carseat she can't wear her winter coat, so she just had a fleece jacket.) I thought 'oh my, this will NOT do!'

So I got Bit out of her seat and opened up my jacket (putting hers on is a pain sometimes) and I cuddled her against me. Then we sat in the driver's seat to wait while the car warmed up. It was so nice to just sit there with her and enjoy the morning sky lighting up. She spotted a bird and said "Bir" (her new favorite word, besides "go go"). To my surprise she didn't squirm at all. We just cuddled and warmed up. I even waited an extra minute to continue enjoying the experience. Soon she'll be too big for things like that. Bittersweet sigh!

Also, N made her a toaster waffle this morning (she got up early, ugh!) and when it popped up from the toaster, she said "Uh oh". Just so cute and funny.

My e-mail signature was:

--
Buffy: Does it ever get easy?
Giles: Yes, it's terribly simple. The good guys are always stalwart and true, the bad guys are easily distinguished by their pointy horns or black hats, and we always defeat them and save the day. No one ever dies, and everybody lives happily ever after.
Buffy: Liar.

Today, Feb. 2012, I have a 17mo old sweetheart who is a great sleeper and loves to chew on her shoes. I have a bright, beautiful 5yo who lives with zest and still doesn't like to sleep. I drop-off/pick-up the kids and Bit has just started helping me make dinner. I am 31 and N is 34.

Life according to g-cal: we are too busy with dr appts, date night, and 2 active kids to watch much TV (but let's not overlook the brilliant happiness of Roku technology!). We no longer have our carseats professionally installed/inspected. Overnights at GranB's (for the kids) are commonplace! We've been homeowners for 4 years. Sadly I don't talk to my college friends much, but I have developed some great mom-friendships. I have stopped gaming more or less and have been using Emeals and Pintrest for meal planning. I gained some weight at the end of 2011, but still weigh less than 180! I have been out of the 200's since 2007, not counting pregnancy. I am hoping to celebrate my grandma's 90th birthday with her next year, though it will require traveling this time around.

On 2/29/12, I wrote this story about Bit (heart-melting):

Here's a cute story from last week: I was in the car with Violet and we were listening to Allison Krauss's cover of "Baby Mine" (a song about loving your baby from the Disney movie Dumbo). Bit was really quiet, then I heard a sniffle. I realized she was crying...tears running down her cheeks! I worried that I had upset her or she was thinking about her mommy (since the song is sung by a mom to her baby). But no...I held her and talked to her and found out she was crying thinking about her baby sister and how sad she'd be if something ever happened to her. Isn't that just so precious??

My e-mail signature is:

--

"A goal without a plan is just a wish."

Antoine de Saint-Exupery
French writer (1900 - 1944)

Feb 2016: Who knows?

I will be 35; N will be 38; Bit will be 9; Newb will be 5. The girls will both be in elementary school, which hopefully they will enjoy. I hope N and I will both still work at places we enjoy. I hope I will have maintained my weight at a healthy level for several year. And we ought to be out of debt or close to it. I'm sure there will be changes I can't even fathom...I pray there won't be any grief or loss, but those things are inevitable in life. I just hope for the best and pray for the strength to rise to the challenges put forth to me.

Motivational thought

Courtesy of the YMCA:

Our mind and body thrive when we push ourselves to our limits. This year strive to get outside of your comfort zone. Commit to being the best you can be.

Yikes!

I have a really busy month coming at work--I have to change my workout schedule as a result. I need to commit to an altered schedule.

Stick with it

I thought I'd just share this little tidbit I wrote to encourage a friend of mine (If this does not apply to you, move on--but I think it applies to many areas of life):

I have really struggled with food since Christmas, but overall I have lost weight!

I have learned this: life is hard! And Weight Watchers(WW) is a lifestyle--that means there will be times when food is not my focus. Sometimes my life/family/work/etc demand my attention and I have to accept that the food might slide a little--as long as I'm still aware of what I'm eating and I intend to get back on track, I've found that I do eventually get back there! Small scale--I gained 1 lb a few weeks ago...now I'm down 5 lbs! Because I stuck with it. Large scale--I joined WW in 2002 (yikes 9 years ago!) at 279...I plateaued, and quit and rejoined, but certain lifestyle changes stuck with me, so I never gained it all back. Since 2007 I've only been over 200 lbs due to pregnancy and I'm still amazed at the healthy lifestyle WW has given me. I'm so grateful and happy to have found my own inner strength--but that certainly does NOT mean I don't have hard periods where my food is out of control. So, bottom line, stick with it, baby!

A Girls' Night Out

My mom has gotten some scary medical news recently, so we have been talking alot. She just rejoined Weight Watchers and is all fired up to make her success last this time. I am 100% behind her because I know the program works. It worked for me. I lost over 100 lbs. and I'm keeping it off!

So I suggested that I meet her for her weekly meeting and we have dinner together afterward. I could tell she was excited by the tone in her voice. I was excited, too. Once I found the center, the meeting was good. I bought a few treats and shared a little of my story. I got 2 star "Bravo" stickers and a free "Lose for Good" tote bag for my trouble. It was great! It actually inspired me to go to meetings again on my own.

Then Mom and I had a lovely dinner at Applebees (with their WW friendly menu) and we chatted for what seemed like hours. I can't wait to do it again next month!

Weight Loss: Rewards & Goals

The theme this week seems to be weight loss. So in anticipation of finally losing some more weight, I thought I'd outline some goals and rewards.

Rewards
1. Buy some WW snacks (expensive)
2. Buy a food processor (particularly for trying out Hungry Girl's faux fried dishes)

Goals
1. Make a more WW-friendly meal plan
2. Cook ahead on the weekend
3. Make my own snack packs (entails buying more gladware and planning)

I have to avoid those 100 calorie packs because I eat too many mindlessly. Fie!

Manic Monday

I've got to go get the Bit from daycare, but I thought I'd jot down today's challenge:

My eating is out of control, which sucks. I've been struggling to get below 180 on the scale for months now. I've resisted going back to Weight Watchers because I'm sick of food journaling.

However, they're running a campaign where they'll donate food to the hungry for every pound lost. So that was the catalyst for me to re-join (yet again). I really hope I can maintain the accountability and actually take some weight off over the next 3 months.

Here's to less of me!